1. Field
The present invention relates to light emitting diode (LED) packages.
2. Discussion of the Background
A light emitting diode (LED) is basically a PN junction diode that is the junction of a P-type semiconductor and an N-type semiconductor.
An LED has a PN junction of a P-type semiconductor and an N-type semiconductor. When a forward-bias voltage is applied to the P-type semiconductor and the N-type semiconductor, holes of the P-type semiconductor move toward the N-type semiconductor, while electrons of the N-type semiconductor move toward the P-type semiconductor. Thus, the electrons and the holes move into the PN junction.
In the PN junction, the electrons fall from a conduction band into a valence band and combine with the holes. At this point, the electrons release energy corresponding to the height difference (i.e., energy difference) between the conduction band and the valence band. The energy is released in the form of light.
As light emitting semiconductor devices, LEDs have various advantages such as environment-friendly, low operation voltage, long lifetime, and low price. LEDs have been widely used as indicator lamps to display simple information such as numerals. Recently, with the development of industrial technology such as information display technology and semiconductor technology, LEDs are used as a light source of a display device such as a liquid crystal display (LCD) device.
As a light source of a backlight unit, LEDs are used in the form of a side-view LED package. With the trend toward the slimness and large screen size of LED devices, LED packages are developed to become thinner. However, the thin LED packages may be easily collapsed or inclined when mounted.